Self-locking seal.



No. 876,255. PATENTED JAN. 7, 1908. H. G. BENTLEY.

$ELP LOCKING SEAL.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 25, 1907.

C I atmnoig the opening UNITED STATES PATENT @FFXCE. H RAOE e. COLORADO.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 7, 1908.

Application filed July 25. 1907- Serial No. 385,545.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HORACE G. BENTLEY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Denver, in the county of Denver and State of Colorado, have invented certain new and useful Irn rovements in Self-Locking Seals; and I do flereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and. exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to of-reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

his invention relates to new and useful improvements in automatically locking seals an comprises various details of construction and combinations and arran rements of arts which will be hereinafter ful y describe and then specifically defined in the appended claims.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings which, with the letters of reference marked thereon, form'a part of the ap lication, and in which:-

igure 1 is a perspective view of my improved seal, showing one end inserted and eldwithin a suitable casing. Fig. 2 is a sectional view on line 22 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a sectional view showing both ends of the securing strap fastened within the casing. Fig. 4 is a pers ective View showing the parts of the loc issembled. Fig. 5 is a detail view showing in perspective the end of the seal strap which is attached to the casing, and Fig. 6 is a detail View of the strap showing a win at the end thereof, which is adapted to be Folded in the manner shown in Fig. 5 of the drawings.

Reference now being had to the details of the drawings by letter, A desi nates a securing strap made preferably 0 any suitable metal and provided with an opening a near one'end thereof, and B designates a hollow casing or chamber made of two sections which are fastened ginal edges thereof being interlocked in any suitable manner. One of said sections of the casing is provided with an aperture 0 formed in the flange thereof and is adapted to receive the hooked end D of said strap 'A, in the manner clearly shown in Figs. 2 and 3 of the drawings. It will be understood that the end D of the strap A is inserted throu h C before the two sections of t e casing are astened together and, when once together by the mar-.

letters and figures .that the wing A inserted in place, the marginal edge of one of the sections of the casing is clenched over the end D whereby the latter may be securely held in place. Referring to Figs. 4 to 6 inclusive of the drawings, it will be noted that said strap A has thereof, which is adapted to be folded over upon the strap, and said wing is provided with an aperture E which, when folded as shown in ig. 5, is in registration with an aperture in the shank of said strap. Said wing also has a resilient finger F at one end thereof with a space intervening between the same and the portion of said wing which is perforated. Near the end of the strap A is an opening H, and K designates a recess or indented portion of the strap continuous with the forward marginal edge of the opening" II and provided for the purpose which will be hereinafter described.

-N designates a resilient locking member made preferably of a bar of spring steel and one end of which is bent as at N at right angles and adapted to rest upon the bottom of the indenture K upon which it is movable, and the shank portion of said locking memer N is sprung underneath the resilient finger F, which latter holds said member with suflicient frictional force in an adjusted. position. The oppositeend of said member N is provided which rests, when the device is set to receive the free end of the strap, upon the outer surface of the wing A.

One of the sectionsof the casing, it will be noted, has a cut-away ortion Q, shown clearly in Fig. 4 of the rrawings, which is provided to allow one end of the wing A to extend therethrough. It will be observed is spaced apart from the strap proper against which it is bent a sufficient distance to allow the free end' .of the strap to be inserted between. said wing and the outerface of the strap. After the parts have been assembled. by the locking member being secured underneath the finger F and held in the osition shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings an the end of the strap D passed through the opening C inthe lower section of the shell and the two sections of the shell secured together, the seal is in readiness to be locked. When it is desired to lock the free end of the strap A within the casing,

said end is inserted between the wing and the a wing A near one end.

- reduced to a minimum and one in sertion of the a further inserting movement of said free end, will cause the member N to move therewith and, after the opposite angled end 0 passes over the marginal edges of the two registering apertures E and E in said strap and wing, said end 0 will spring through the apertures and also the aperture 12', which. is formed near the end of the strap A, thereby securely holding the end of the strap from beingwithdrawn by said angled portion 0 eoming'in contact with the marginal edges of the three apertures E, a and E, as will be readily understood, Pulling upon the free end of the strap, will cause the lo oking member N to be drawn slightly in one direction and, when the end N passes oh the indented portion K, said end N will spring through the aperture H in the strap and will cooperate with the angled portion 0 to securely hold said member N in a locking relation.

As the space intermediate the wing and the shank portion of the strap is only of suiticient width to end of the strap ginal edge of one of the sections forniing the casing is only of sufficient dimension to allow the parts of the strap to project therethrough, it will be observed that any tampering with the seal by the use of instruments in an at tern t to disconnect the ends will be practica y impossible without first destroying the casing. Y

By the provision of a seal. embodying the features set forth, a'siniple and eilicient de vice is afforded in which the parts utilized are which a secure lock is afforded.

What I claim to be new is 1. A self locking seal comprising a casing, a strap attached firmly thereto and provided with an aperture, said strap having a wing 'rovided with an aperture in registration with an aperture in the strap, a that longi' tudinally sliding resilient i g member having angled ends restin upon the outer face of said wing and ti other against the adjacent face of the strap, one of said angled ends adapted to moved by the inlooking member to swing through registering apertures in the strap allow theinsertion of the free a and as the opening in the mar E erases 'ip-ral finger upon the W ig adapted to bee gainst said sliding locking rnernher, set th.

A sell-locking seal comprising a casing, a strap attached firmly thereto and provided with an aperture, said stra having a wing provided with an ture in registratron with the aperture in said strap, a longitudinally sliding resilient locking member having angled. ends adapted to rest one upon the outer face of the wing and the other upon the face of the strap adjacent to its fixed end, said wing provided with an integral resilient finger bearing against and adapted to engage and hold said locking member in a bowed position, so that one-oi the angled ends of the member may he in the path of the inserted end of the strap, said IHEHllDQl being adapted to be moved longitudinallyhy the inserted end of the strap and one of its ac-.gled ends thrown through an aperture in the strap by said integral projection of the wing, as set forth. v

3. A self locking seal comprising a casing, a strap attached firmly thereto and provided with an aperture, said strap having a wing and wing, and an i provided with an aperture in registration with the aperture in tudinally sliding resilient locking member having angled ends adapted to rest one upon the outer face of the wing and the other resting in an indenture formed in the strap adjaoent to its fixed end, said indenture leading into an aperture formed in the strap, said wing provided with an integral resilient finger adapted to bear against said member and hold the same under tension, the inner angled end resting in said indenture being positioned in the path of the inserted end of the strap and adapted to he moved thereby, the angled ends of the looking ineinher adapted to be thrown into apertures in the wing and strap when, in registration with said aperture, set forth. I In testimony whereof l hereunto afiix my signature in the presence of two witnesses. HO ACE G. BENTLEY,

Witnesses LAURENCE Snares, Eisner B. SEATQN.

said strap, a longi- 

